Batting

CHARLESTON, S.C. - Charleston Southern dropped both ends of Wednesday's doubleheader to visiting Furman at the CSU Softball Field as the Buccaneers fell to the Paladins, 8-0 and 6-3.

Furman (31-10) utilized the strong pitching of Lindsey Bert (19-7) and Emily DeMonte (12-1) to hold off the CSU (25-21) offense on the day in taking the sweep. Jade Gandara connected on her team-leading 13th home run of the season in the second game to pace CSU's offensive efforts on the afternoon.

Game One: Furman 8, Charleston Southern 0 (6 inn.) Lindsey Bert got it done in the circle and at the plate in the first game of the doubleheader with the senior pitcher throwing a complete game one-hitter while connecting on one of five Furman home runs in the contest as the Paladins topped the Buccaneers in six innings.

Annie Bakenhus broke up Bert's no-hit bid in the fourth inning with a two-out single in the bottom of the fourth, while Jade Gandara drew a walk for CSU's lone base-runners in the game.

After a scoreless three innings with Bert and Arizona Pilgrim (8-9) trading zeroes on the scoreboard, the Paladins struck for two runs in the fourth. Bert led off the frame with a solo home run over the fence in right center for the first run of the game. Hannah Reynolds added an RBI single two batters later to stake Furman to the 2-0 lead.

Casey Bigham added a solo home run in the fifth, and AnnaRose Borrelli, Reynolds, and Mariss Guimbarda connected on back-to-back-to-back home runs in the sixth to highlight the five home run day for Furman. Bigham scored the final run on a wild pitch.

The Bucs were retired in order in the sixth inning in the loss.

Pilgrim suffered the loss after going the first five innings. The junior right-hander allowed six hits and six runs (four earned) while striking out three. Nina Del Rio allowed the final two runs in her inning of work.

Bert allowed one hit and a walk while striking out eight in the complete game win.

Game Two: Furman 6, Charleston Southern 3Jade Gandara attempted to spark a CSU comeback with a two-run home run in the bottom of the seventh, but the Furman lead was too much to overcome late as the Bucs fell to the Paladins, 6-3.

Gandara (2-for-4) and Sarah Brown (3-for-3) had multi-hit efforts in the contest as the Bucs' offense bounced back with eight hits in the final game of the day.

Emily DeMonte went the first five innings allowing six hits and a run while striking out one in the win. Bert went the final two innings in the save.

Holly Clark (7-6) suffered the loss after going the first 6.1 innings allowing nine hits and six runs while striking out two. Nicole Ayala retired the final two batters in relief.

Brittany Houston connected on a one-out RBI single in the top of the second inning and Lauren Duggar followed with a sacrifice fly to centerfield to provide the Paladins with the early 2-0 lead.

AnnaRose Borrelli added a solo home run in the top of the third to stake Furman to the three-run advantage.

Summer Moore put the Bucs on the scoreboard in the bottom of the fourth. Brown led off the inning with an infield single and stole second to move into scoring position. She took third on a wild pitch before Moore connected on a pinch-hit single to centerfield to bring Brown across the plate.

Emma Ogburn stretched the lead back out to three with a solo home run in the sixth, while Bert and Borrelli connected on a pair of RBI doubles in the seventh to provide the 6-1 margin.

The Bucs mounted a two-out rally in the seventh inning as Caitlyn Emberson singled to centerfield before Gandara turned on a fastball and cranked it over the right field fence. However, Bert retired the next batter on strikes to close out the contest.

News & Notes

Charleston Southern was one-hit for the third time this season following the first game of the doubleheader against the Paladins. CSU also connected on only one hit against Tennessee (March 2) and against Coastal Carolina (March 21).

Jade Gandara connected on her team-leading 13th home run of the season in the bottom of the seventh of game two. She extended her on-base streak to nine games following the doubleheader against Furman.